Apparatus for making fluid extracts



No. s|7,322.

Patented lan. I0, |899.

. J. l". DUKE.

APPARATUS FDR MAKING FLUID EXTI'AGTS.4

(Application lel Duo. 14. 1897.)

(No Model.)

/V VE'NTRJ uw @MV :m Ml

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOI-IN F. DUKE, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

APPAARATUS. FOR MAKING FLUID EXTRACTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 617,322, dated January 10, 1899. Application filed December 14, 1897. Serial No. 661,787. (No model- To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN FREDERICK DUKE, of London, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for the Manufacture of Liquid Extracts of Coffee or other Substances, (for which I have obtained patents in Great Britain, No. 19,675, bearing date September 5, 1896; iuFrance, No. 267,674, bearing date June 8, 1897, and in Belgium, No. 129,697, bearing date July 27, 1897,) of which the following isaspecification.

My invention has reference to themanufacture of liquid extracts of coieev or other substances; and its object is to obtain, withL out having recourse to the process of evaporation, an extract with all the aromatic oils or principles constituting the aroma and fragrance of the coffee or other substance (or other like qualities, according to the particular substance treated) intact and of any required strength. l

The invention is more particularly applicable for the manufacture of a liquid extract of coffee, and I will hereinafter describe it as used for extracting coee; but it is also applicable to the manufacture of other liquid extracts in which oxidation or contact with the air is `prejudicial-such, for example, as scents or perfumes from flowers or thelike.

For the preparation o f liquid extract of coffee with my improved apparatus I preferably use coee roasted to a cinnamon color and not to blackness and ground While still'hot,

' closed liquid-extract receiver.

and I submit the freshly-ground coffee in a series of hermetically-closed vessels to the action of boiling water caused to pass undery pressure from vessel to vessel throughout the series, the said vessels being connected together and those at the two ends of the series being connected, respectively, with a boiler or hot-water and steam supply and With'a It is essential that the vessels be hermetically closed, so that the air is prevented from coming in contact with the coiee when this" lis at a high temperature, and thereby oxidizing the aromatic oils or principles.

From time to time-say, aboutgevery ten to fifteen minutes, more or lesse-#the vessel next the boiler is removed, the remaining vessels shifted one stage nearer the boiler, and a fresh vessel charged with ground coffee put in position next the extract-receiver. Only as much water is supplied as is required in the final extract, so that it is not necessary to have recourse to evaporation, according to the usual practice in making liquid extract of coffee, and as all 'the vessels and thereceiver are closed the water that iiows through ments from the coffee therein is not exposed to the oxidizing influence of the air, and it an extract without loss of any of the aroma and fragrance of the coffee. It will be un-l derstood that the Water in passing through the series of vessels flows ,first through that in which the coee has become nearly spent by the Water previously passed through it and then through those less spent until it reaches the vessel containing a fresh charge of coee. The ilow of water is intermittent, only enough being supplied at a time fo apl proximately ill one vessel which has been about two-thirds filled with ground coffee.

In carrying out my invention I provide a plurality of separately-movable vessels with Yan inlet at top and an outlet at bottom and with pipes and appliances for connecting up in an air-tight manner the bottom of one ves sel with the top of the next of the series or the top of the first vessel with thev boiler and the bottom of the last vessel with the extractreceiver, or, preferably, with a cooling-Worm placed between the last vessel and the receiver. The vessels have percolators or strainers at bottom to prevent the coffee-grounds choking the outlet. the first vessel with the boiler preferably has two branches communicating, respectively, with the Water and steam spaces of the boiler. The vessels are preferably supported on one or more horizontal rails and are fitted with rollers or other antifriction appliances' to facilitate their movement along the sam/e during the required changes of position.

the vessels and extracts the essential eletherefore reaches the receiver in the form of The pipe that connects L In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is section of one of the extracting vessels, and

Fig. 4 is a plan of the lower part of the same with the strainer omitted. Figs. 3 and 4 are drawn to a larger scale than Figs. 1 and 2.

In the figures, A is a boiler adapted to be heated by means of a ring 1 of gas-jets fed by a gas-supply pipe 2.

B 1?2 B3 B4 B5 BG 137-138 B" are a series of nine extracting vessels arranged one behind the other and each adapted to run by means of grooved wheels 3 upon a pair of horizontal rails C C, which are carried on pillars C' and also serve to support the boiler A. A pipe 4 connects the bottom or water-space of the boiler A with the top of the first extracting Vessel B', and a pipe 5 connects the bottom of the vessel B' with the top of the next following vessel B2 of the series, and so on until the last vessel B is reached, the other successive vessels being connected by the pipes G 7 8 9 10 11 12. The bottom of the last vessel B9 is fitted with a delivery-pipe 13, provided with a cock, as hereinafter described.

Each extracting vessel consists of a top part b', a middle part b2, and abottom part b3. The top part b' is adapted to be closed air-tight upon the middle part b2 by means of thumbscrews 14 and clamps 15, hinged to the middle part b2. The middle part and the bottom part are connected in an air tight manner by flanges and bolts, as show-n, with or without a suitable packing. The middle part is provided with brackets and journals 16, which carry the grooved wheels 3, (two on each side of the vesseh) that run on the rails C. The bottom part b is provided with a hemispherical percolator or strainer 17, of wire-gauze, which retains the coffeeegrounds and prevents them from choking the outlet. The strainer 17 is flanged at top, and the flange is held between the flanges of the parts b2 ZF. Ribs or projections 1S are formed on the inner surface ofthe bottom part b3, against which the strainer 17 takes a bearing and by which it is supported in such a manner as to leave a space between it and the inner surface of the vessel for the collection of the liquor or ex tract passing through the strainer. Channels 19 are formed down the sides of the bottom part b3 and through the ribs 1S in order to facilitate the passage of the liquor to the outlet 20. To this bottom outlet 2O is fitted by means of a screw-union 21 the lower end of one of the pipes 5 to 12, as the case may be, according to the order of position of the vessel in the series-viz., the pipe 9 in the case of the vessel B5, for example. The top part b of the vessel has an inlet 22, to which is fitted by means of a screw-union 23 the upper end of the preceding pipe in order of position viz., the pipe 8 in the case of the vessel B5.

The pipe 4, which connects the Water-space of the boiler A with the top of the first vessel B', has a branch 4', which connects with the steam-space of the boiler A. Cocks 24 and 25 are provided, so as to allow of establishing communication as may be required between the first vessel B' and either the steam or the water space ot' the boiler A. The liquid in all the extracting vessels B' to B'J should be kept at boiling-point. This may be effected by any suitable heating apparatus-such, for example, as a-set of gasjets l* under each vessel.

The apparatus is Worked as follows: Supposing that all the vessels B" to B have been charged with ground coffee and the process has already been carried on until the ground coffee in all the vessels B' to BB, except the last, B9, (which has just been put in place,) has become partly spent in progressive degrecs. All the vessels B to B3, except the last, B, are full of water, more or less in thc form of coffee extract. Ilot water is admitted from the boiler A, through the cock 24 and pipe 4, to the first or most-spent vessel B', the amount being sufficient to fill up the vessel B9, freshly charged with coffee, the result of which is that the liquid fiows from vessel to vessel unt-il the last or new'one, B, becomes filled. The hotwater supply is then shut off at the cock 24 and steam is turned through the cock 25 and pipes 4' 4 on t-o the first vessel B'. The steam graduallyv forces the water or liquid out ofthe first vessel B', so that itis again caused to flow from vessel to vessel, and the last vessel B" delivers through the pipe 13 an amount of liquid in the form of extract equal to that last snpplied to the first vessel l'. The first vessel B' is now disconnected from the boiler A and the last vessel B from the worin. 'l`hc first vessel B is then removed, all the others pushed one stage nearer the boiler, a fresh vessel placed next the worm, and the connections are remade. rlhe apparatus is then ready for the admission of a :fresh supply of water to the series of vessels, as before.

1n order to insure that a given amount of extract shall be delivered from the last ves` sel B*l through the delivery-pipe 13 at every action of the apparatus, and therefore insure at the same time the introduction of an equivalent amount of water into the first vessel B', whereby an extract of practically uniform strength is always obtained, 1 adopt the arrangement which I` will now describe. The delivery-pi pe 13 from the last vessel B is fitted with a cock 26 and leads to an intermediate vessel 27. From the vessel 27 a pipe 2S, fitted with a cock 29, leads to a closed extract-receiver, not shown,) a cooling-worln being interposed, if desired, between the vessel 27 and the said extract-receiver. 1n the vessel 27 is a float 30 on the end of a rod 31, which passes through an aperture in the top of the vessel. On the top of a rod 31 rests one end of a lever 32, pivoted at When this end of the lever 32 is raised a given distance, its other end comes against Va contact 34 and completes the circuit of an electric bell 35. The parts are so adjusted that when the vessel 27 has received the given amount of extract through the pipe 13 the bcll-circuit is IOC IIO

' ith'ifsupply and discharge-apparatus, of. a- 5 completed and the l "if-jvesselsconnectedftogetber in suoattendant patience lelses'ithefcoe whereby the last vessel of the series can be -of the extracting vessels near one end of the .pipe separably connecting another ofthe exseries to the water-supply apparatus, and a tracting vessels near the other end-of the series to the receiving vessel, whereby successive extracting vessels can be disconnected from the receiving vessel, moved tot-he other end of theseries and connected to'tbeinitialv vessel thereof and to thewater-supply, sub? stantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In apparatus for the manufacture of extracts and for similar purposes, lthe combination with supply and discharge apparatus, of a series of separately-removable vessels, pipes separably connecting such vessels together in succession, pipes separately con necting the first vessel of the series with the supply apparatus and the last vessel of the series with the `discharge apparatus, a support movably carryingsaid vessels, and means disconnected, the adjacent vessel can be connected to the discharge apparatus, and the disconnected vessel can be connected to the rst vessel of the series and to the supply apparatus.

3.- In apparatus for the manufacture of extracts and for like purposes, the combination openigthef'dbelai* veparable connection between the" 'sel27thenf'io rop f such series andthe supply ap- 5 closedaextraetf c ei er. T :'paratus; aiisepai'able connection between=the 1 the vesselx27. 4 I st/vesseljoff such series and fthe-discharge 6o' The extraet'can vliemdra'wnfrein th apparatu'safseiies of heaters for ,su-chivesreceiver into bottles read'ykifor sale; gsels; and means whereby the last vessel of the- Instead of the boilei .Al a hot-wa Iseries can be removed and connected'with the xo may be employed, disposed 4at such 1a" heightA series as the first, and means whereby the serelatively to the extractingvessels asf'to prories of vessels can be moved to successive po 65 "wide the necessary pressure to force'the'wa sitions relatively to such heaters and-to the ter from vessel to vessel. l v supply and discharge apparatus. f

The strength of the extract obtained can 4. In apparatus/for the manufacture of liq- 15 be varied by varying the quantity of' water uid extract f coffee or other substance,ahot4 supplied at each charge or proportionately water-supplyapparatus,aseriesof independ- 7o varying the number of vessels. Y ently-movable hermetically-closed extract- What I claim, and desire to secure by Leting vessels, a pipe connecting the hotwater `ters Patent, issupply apparatus with'the top of the rst exzo l. In\ apparatus for the manufacture of liqtracting vessel,:pipes connecting the bottom uid extract of colee or other substances, a of each extracting vessel with the top of the water-supply apparatus, and a receivingyesnext extracting vessel, a delivery-pipe consel, in combination with a series of separatelynecting with the bottom of the last extracting movable extracting vessels, pipes Aseparably v'essel and means whereby the pipe connec- -25 connecting the extracting, vessels together in tions can be temporarily disconnected and succession, a pipe separably connecting one then reconnected, substantially as and for the 8o vpurpose set forth and shown.

5. In a vessel'for making liquidextract of coiee orl other substance, .an approximately hemispherieal lower part hermetically connected to the upper part of said vessel ribs' on 8 5 the inside of said lower part, a hemispherical percolator in said lower part bearing against's'" said ribs and channels in said lower part and in said ribs, substantially as audfor the purpose set forth and shown.

6. In apparatus for vthe manufacture of liquid extract of coiee or other substance, the combination with a series of movable extracting vessels, an apparatus supplying said vessels with hot water and pipes connecting said vessels with each other and V with'said supply apparatus, of journals at the sides vof said vessels, Wheels mounted on said journals and rails supporting said wheels, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE C. BACON, ROBERT M. SPEARPOINT.

IOO 

